German Ab Initio

German Ab Initio is generally available to non-native German speakers who have studied German for less than three (3) years. 

The course aims include:

• developing  international-mindedness through the study of the German language, its culture, and issues of global significance

• improving students’ intercultural understanding; 

• enabling students to understand and use the language in a range of contexts and for a variety of purposes

• encouraging an awareness and appreciation of the different perspectives of people from other cultures

• developing students’ awareness of the role of language in relation to other areas of knowledge

• developing students’ awareness of the relationship between languages and cultures with which they are familiar

• providing students with a basis for further study, work, or leisure through the use of an additional language. 

Ab Initio, Latin for “from the beginning,” is by nature a Standard Level (SL) course.  There are no requirements, other than that students not have more than three (3) years of German.

The IB DP Ab Initio course covers five major themes: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization, and Sharing the Planet.  Each theme consists of four prescribed topics, which each include a variety of details and information.

In our course, students work through the following units, all of which are built from the themes and topics as described above:

• Hallo, wie geht’s?/Meine Freunde und Bekannten (Hi, how are you?/My Friends and Others)

• Alltägliches - Wie läuft dein Tag ab? (Everyday Life - What’s your day like?)

• Feste feiern, Urlaub machen (Celebrations and Vacations)

• Unsere Welt (Our World)

• Soziale Organisationen (Social Organizations)

• Gesund Leben (Healthy Living)

• Menschliche Erfindungen, Menschliche Probleme  (Human Inventions, Human Problems)

Units include both vocabulary and grammar, as well as culturally relevant information and practice in proper use of required text types.

Students are tested in 4 areas: speaking, reading, writing, and listening.  The final exam consists of:

• Paper 1 - a writing prompt in which students have to choose the appropriate text type for the assignment.

• Paper 2 - split into a listening exercise and a reading exercise, both with questions.

• Internal Assessment (also called the Individual Oral) - speaking assessment in which students respond to a previously unknown stimulus and then answer questions from the teacher.

The course is divided into 7 units over 3+ semesters.  It begins with topics common to language learning and progresses through more complex concepts. In the weeks prior to the exams, there is time for review and clarification.    As language learners, students have the opportunity to show evidence of IB Learner Profile traits, including risk-taking, open-mindedness, and thinking skills.  There are opportunities to engage with a broad range of topics of personal, local, national, and global significance.  Students learn to approach such topics in a sensitive, responsible and reflective manner, bearing in mind the IB’s mission and its commitment to international-mindedness and intercultural respect within the context of the course. 

All major assessments are graded in similar fashion to the final exams, using the same mark bands as laid out in the IBDP Ab Initio guide. Students are given the opportunity to practice their skills in P1 (writing), P2 (reading and listening), and the IO.  The end-of-year Gr. 11 exam counts for 30% of the grade for the year and focuses on reading and writing.  The mock exam in Gr. 12 covers three components, namely P1 (writing) and P2 (listening & reading).

We use the following textbook set, including workbooks, although we do not go through them page by page; we use the series in conjunction with many other resources.

Lin, D. F. (2018). Pluspunkt Deutsch Leben in Österreich (A1 and A2). Berlin: Cornelsen Verlag GmbH. 

For more information, please contact Ms. Lisa Kerwin.

• lkerwin@danubeschool.com 

• Office hours by appointment.